Charlie Connor's face was handsome even unconscious. I kind of hated him for that. Harmony photographed me sleeping once, and I looked like a slack jawed fool with a drooling problem. But he looked serene, not a trace of drool in sight, despite the bleeding gash on his smooth forehead.

Digging through my pack, I pulled out the first aid kit I'd stashed on a whim. Most teenagers around Black Brier carried healing tonics if they didn't possess the Healing Gift. Always paid to be prepared in a town when spells could backfire or creatures of myth could pop up. I was stuck with alcohol wipes and gauze- both of which I was very thankful for as I tried to patch up the teenage boy before me. The teenage boy who, by all the rules and magic, shouldn't be here.

"Charlie, Charlie," I whispered, mopping up the blood with a wince. Head wounds bleed a lot. I knew that, but I couldn't stop the panic as every swipe came away red.

His lashes fluttered, and a low moan escaped his lips. But he didn't wake up. For that, I was grateful. There was no telling what brought him here or if he would be in his right mind when he came to. I needed a few moments to come up with an explanation. I also needed backup.

After taping gauze over his wound, I fired off a quick text, praying she was near her phone. If it was Flannery, I'd be certain to hear from her in seconds if she wasn't sleeping. Willow might not reply for days, but barely a minute passed before two figures shimmered into existence at my side.

"Holy crap," Willow gasped, pointing at Charlie, "why is there a dead man here?"

"He's not dead," I snapped, swinging my gaze toward Ash. Why had he come? And why did I feel guilty?

"Is that the guy from St. Augustine?" Ash asked. His voice sounded carefully controlled.

"Charlie. Flannery's brother."

"Oh crap," Willow said, dropping to her knees to see him better, "a dead man would be easier to explain. How did an impoten get in here?"

"I have no idea. I felt someone touch me, and when I spun around, this charm blasted him backward." I held up my wrist for them to see. Ash let loose a low whistle. "You recognize this?"

He held my wrist with one hand, running his fingers over the bracelet with the other. I tried to keep my expression neutral, not wanting him to see how much I enjoyed his touch.

"I don't know if I've seen anything quite like this before. Your mom's handiwork, I'm guessing."

"Yeah, I found it in her shop." I didn't mention the way the charm had called to me.

"Alizon Wych is extremely talented."

Willow pushed her fingers against her temple. "What were you doing out here, Rosey?"

"Oh, um," I said, searching for a way to avoid looking like an idiot. There wasn't one. "I couldn't sleep, and I knew some of the shadier witches in town liked to meet here so I thought I'd see if they were our culprits."

Willow snickered and looked over at the group dancing around the fire, still unaware or uncaring of our existence. "Rose, you do know why the Council let's them keep this mess up, right?"

"Because they're not really doing anything illegal."

"That, and not a single person in that group has the power to do anything really bad if they wanted to. They're a step above impotens. Heck, some people think they should be kicked out."

Her words stung, but I didn't say comment on the slip. She didn't mean it that way. Even if I felt it.

Instead, I said, "Don't you think they're exactly who we should be looking at? People who want power or who need it for their spells? What better way to get it than to Siphon it off everyone else?"

"It makes sense," Ash said, rubbing his chin and watching the other witches with renewed interest.

"I think they're more interested in fertility rituals than demon summoning," Willow argued, pointing at a pair who'd separated from the circle. Clothes were disappearing at an alarming rate, and the couple fell to the ground with a thud.

"Okay, let's get out of here." I hopped to my feet. "Ash, you grab his shoulders, and I'll grab his feet. We need to get him to the town line without being caught."

"Uh, that's six miles, and most of that is uphill," Willow shrieked, raising a foot to show off her high heel. I hadn't noticed until then they were dressed for a party. "Not to mention, we can't cross the line until the morning. What are we going to do- sit with him until then? What do we do if he wakes up?"

"I can cross the line," I said, touching the locket around my neck. "If we can get him to the house, I'll take him home."

"By yourself?"

"Yes, by myself," I snapped, "and don't speak to me in that growly tone Ash Goodwin. I'm perfectly capable of doing this alone."

"Oh, that's why we left a party to find you in a cemetery," he countered.

He crossed his arms over his chest and narrowed his eyes. I knew that stubborn set to his jaw. It was one I'd perfected myself and very rarely did I budge when using it. But Ash wasn't like this. He was level headed and calm.

"Look, I think we can all agree I never expected this to happen! Have y'all ever heard of a human sneaking through the wards? Nope. Didn't think so. The important thing right now is getting Charlie somewhere safe. He could have a concussion. So unless either of you has suddenly developed the Healing Gift-" I paused in my tirade and waited for them to respond. "No, I didn't think so."

"Whatever, just promise me-us- you won't go traipsing about in the dark alone again," Ash said, bending over to grab Charlie by the shoulders.

"I will ask for company next time," I said, lifting Charlie's feet. "Good grief he's heavy."

"Just a second," Willow said, extending her hand.

A puff of purple wafted from her palm and surrounded Charlie. The strain in my arms disappeared as the boy we carried became weightless. Ash and I grinned at one another across the unconscious form.

"Good job, cuz. I didn't even think of that."

"Of course you didn't. You were too busy pounding your chest like a caveman."

Willow's snark set off a string of bickering between the cousins as we made our way back to my house, but I didn't contribute, even when my best friend asked for backup. If I knew anything about fights between relatives, it was that you didn't get in the middle of them if you weren't involved. Because the person you didn't help out would resurrect some long forgotten grudge, and you'd be declared enemy number one.

After several minutes, I tuned them out and focused on the issue at hand. Our wards were designed to keep impotens out, but I'd never asked how it worked, always assuming the wards looked for magic. That couldn't be right, though. If what I'd learned was true, every being had magic. Our only difference was an ability to use it, but then, did that mean the wards assessed everyone based on ability? The world was filled with people we called sensitives. Psychics is what the world knew them as. Yet, they were kept out of Black Brier same as the impotens.

"You alright there?" Ash asked.

"Sorry, I'm just trying to understand how this happened. How do the wards choose who comes and goes?"

Ash and Willow shared a look. "It's based on active magic versus latent magic. Impotens have latent magic."

"What about sensitives?"

"The way my abuelita explained it was that we're all like radios. Magic is the radio waves, and humans are the receivers. We're tuned into the right station. Impotens are just getting static, and sensitives might as well be getting static. Every now and then they get a blip, maybe a clear word, but they can't do anything with it. It comes to them as feelings. Some understand them, and others don't. It's not really being used."

"So, could Charlie's magic have become active?"

"That's one theory, but I have no idea how it could've happened."

"The potion," Willow whispered as we stopped by my car.

My house remained empty, and I thought how sad it looked sitting in the dark. No spark of its usual warmth burning through the windows.

"What do you mean?" I dropped Charlie's feet to open the door.

"What if he drank some of it," Willow continued, quivering with excitement.

"Then his magic would've been stolen, right?"

"That's if the potion is being made just like the book described it. What if it has another purpose? Or maybe unintended consequences?"

"Like what?" Ash demanded, sounding out of breath. Getting Charlie's big body to fit in the back of my car was starting to look like something only magic could accomplish.

"Like that," she shrieked, snatching me by the arm and pulling me back as Charlie shot straight up, his head slamming into the roof of my car.

The world around us turned hazy, as if the air solidified- someone had conjured a shield spell- but it didn't obscure my vision enough to hide the silver swirling around Charlie's pupils. Silver where the softest brown used to be. Charlie...No, this wasn't Charlie, this was a stranger. The thing blinked at us for several seconds before climbing out of the car and brushing bits of grass and dirt off his body.

"Who are you?" I demanded, reaching for Ash's friend as he teleported behind us.

"Well, hello Rose," he said. His voice was all velvet and fire. "I'm Malphas."